Fast forward a few years, and Wolfington finds himself in the midst of another huge payday. BZ Results, the third company he built in the automotive sector, develops digital solutions for dealerships and manufacturers. Under Wolfington’s watch, it became the industry leader in search marketing, mobile marketing, websites, CRM, and consulting, effectively revolutionizing the way vehicles are sold over the Internet. The company became Google’s No. 1 reseller in all industries, and Wolfington has contributed to more than $5 billion in automotive sales throughout his career. All of this was the genius conception of Wolfington, who was amongst the first to realize the potential the Internet held for automotive marketing. Just three years after its launch, BZ attracted the attention of ADP, which bought it for an undisclosed value, reported in the neighborhood of the previous Reynolds and Reynolds buyout. Wolfington’s companies worked with 12 automotive manufacturers, 76 of the top 100 dealer groups in the country, and more than 4,000 dealerships in 18 countries around the world.
A strict non-compete prevented Wolfington from reentering the automotive marketing game for three years, so what’s a guy who has built three multimillion-dollar businesses to do next? “Like any other entrepreneur I always wanted to play on the field, so I picked up another sport,” he explains. His new playing field was the world of film and entertainment.
Along with his uncle, Eustace Wolfington, he formed The One Media Group, in 2006. Thus far, Wolfington has produced three major motion pictures: Self Medicated, The Mighty Macs, and Bella. The Mighty Macs is the true story of the first NCAA Women’s Championship basketball team, while Self Medicated was the most award-winning film of 2006, earning accolades at the Newport Beach Film Festival and the Los Angeles DIY Film Festival. But it was Bella that stole the show. The independent film is a love story about how New York City changed the lives of three unsuspecting people. It certainly changed the life of Wolfington. The film won top honors at the Toronto Film Festival, one of the largest and most prestigious film festivals in the world, considered the gateway to Oscar recognition—American Beauty, Life is Beautiful, Slumdog Millionaire, and Precious all received awards at TFF and went on to garner Oscar fame. After winning top prize at Toronto, the Bella team was honored at the White House and the Mexican Embassy, received the Smithsonian Institute Legacy Award, and won Best Picture at the Movieguide Awards. By the end of 2007, it was the No. 1-rated movie of the year by the No. 1 film site Rotten Tomatoes, topped the box office for all films in its category (despite a $3 million budget), and achieved distribution at the precipice of a brutal recession. “It is a small film but it has a big heart, and it was an honor to be a part of its success,” says Wolfington.
